at Neighborhood House at High Point, 6400 Sylvan Way, SW (right where SW Morgan St. turns into Sylvan Way SW).

Free (donations accepted)

Refreshments

Discussion

Lab animals, livestock, and pets have developed serious health problems after eating genetically modified (GM) foods. Similar health problems are now on the rise in the U.S. population.

Doctors, scientists, and independent researchers describe the effects of GM food hazards and how they have affected real people’s lives. The health of all living things, and of future generations, is involved, come learn how and participate in the discussion following the movie. More information on meaningful movies at westseattlemeaningfulmovies.org

The Denny Awards acknowledge and honor the crucial role volunteers play in neighborhood parks, community centers, and recreation programs throughout the city. In 2012, more than 40,000 volunteers donated over 426,000 hours of service to Seattle Parks and Recreation. Their service is valued at between $8 and $10 million annually.

Volunteers do everything from pulling invasive ivy and planting native trees in our parks to coaching kids’ sports to working as docents at selected parks to serving on various advisory councils and boards.

“Volunteers are one of our most important resources,” said Acting Superintendent Christopher Williams. “Without the help of the community, we could not run the first rate park and recreation system that Seattle depends on.”

The name of the awards reflects the early commitment by the Denny family to the preservation of parkland and open space for public use and enjoyment. David T. and Louisa Denny donated land that became the first Seattle park, Denny Park, in 1864.

Denny Awards nominees should meet the following minimum qualifications. The nominee must have:

Demonstrated a significant personal commitment of time and effort to assist Seattle Parks and Recreation, and

Gained respect of community peers for efforts to help Seattle Parks and Recreation.

The nomination form for the award, specific criteria and related information (included with this news release) are available by contacting Karen O’Connor, Seattle Parks and Recreation, 206-684-7241, or karen.o’connor@seattle.gov. To download an electronic version of the nomination form, visit: http://www.seattle.gov/parks/denny_awards.

King County’s contractor has cleared the structures from the Murray CSO Control Facility project site. Crews are now backfilling the foundations with soil and installing plastic along the site’s eastern slope to maintain the site’s stability. The site will then be seeded with grass to reduce runoff and dust prior to the start of facility construction later this year. The contractor expects to complete the major remaining work by Friday.

Parking on the east side of Beach Drive Southwest is expected to be restored for the weekend. Project fencing will be returned to the edge of the site, reopening the sidewalk on the east side of the roadway to pedestrians and bicyclists. Street and sidewalk cleaning activities could create temporary access issues to these areas, and could extend into early next week.

Next Steps

King County continues to work with the selected contractor to finalize the project contract and begin preparations for facility construction. King County will hold a public meeting later this fall to discuss the project’s schedule, construction techniques and likely impacts. Community members can continue to call the project hotline (206-205-9185) with concerns or questions about the project.

What to expect:

Work hours will be 7:00 am – 5:00 pm on weekdays. No weekend work is scheduled;

Access to Beach Drive Southwest will be maintained at all times;

Lowman Beach Park will remain open, although street cleaners may be present for a short time late in the week;

Project fencing extending over Beach Drive Southwest’s eastern sidewalk will return to the edge of the site by Friday, September 27. Beach Drive Southwest’s western sidewalk remains open for pedestrians and bicyclists. The eastern sidewalk will be reopened once crews complete restoration activities;

Parking along the eastern side of Beach Drive Southwest will be reopened by the weekend, but may be temporarily unavailable when the contractor cleans the street and sidewalks;

Increased noise and activity typical of a construction site;

Heavy equipment including trucks, excavators, and construction containers operating on and around the project site.

The existing structures on the Murray CSO Control Facility site were removed to allow construction of the new storage facility beginning later this year. The new facility will safeguard Puget Sound by storing sewage and polluted stormwater during storms, and preventing regional sewer system overflows into the water off of Lowman Beach Park. For more information about the new facility, please visit http://www.kingcounty.gov/environment/wtd/Construction/Seattle/MurrayCSOStorage.aspx

Find out if a CSO is occurring in Murray – King County maintains a real-time notification page so people can see whether CSO discharges are occurring.

For more information contact King County Wastewater project community coordinator Doug Marsano by phone at 206-684-1235 or cell at206-423-0480 or by email at Doug.Marsano@kingcounty.gov

Progress continues on the Barton CSO Control project! Puget Sound Energy spent the summer relocating select gas lines to accommodate the future bioretention swales. These gas lines have been relocated, and temporary repaving work has been completed. The temporary pavement will remain in place until swale construction is completed on each street.

Tree transplants will begin later this fall. King County will notify the neighborhood in advance of the work, and neighbors who are receiving a tree for transplant to their property will also receive information onhow to transplant and care for the trees.

King County is in the process of hiring a construction contractor, and major street construction is scheduled to begin in late winter. King County will share a detailed construction schedule later this fall, which will outline when construction will occur on each of the 15 streets slated for swales.

As the project transitions from design into construction, look for a post-design survey in your mailbox in the next few weeks, or find it online at the project website. King County strives to engage the public during the facility design process and provide opportunities for review and input. I encourage you to complete the survey and return it to me – your input will help shape future public engagement efforts as we design and build facilities that protect public health and the environment, and control the sources of pollution that impact our waterways.

The Office of Arts & Culture’s Neighborhood & Community Arts program is announcing the availability of grants for 2014. The Neighborhood & Community Arts program helps Seattle’s neighborhood arts councils and community-based groups produce festivals and events that enhance the visibility of neighborhoods, promote cultural participation, celebrate diversity and build community through arts and culture.

In 2013, the program provided $1,200 each to 40 organizations to support annual public festivals and events. The 2013 Morgan Community Festival was a recipient of a $1200 grant to support the musicians and BubbleMan.

Eligibility:
Neighborhood arts councils and community-based groups may seek support for a recurring festival or event that has been in existence for at least one year, has a significant arts and cultural component, is open to the public and takes place in Seattle. Applicants do not have to have 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status.

Information Session:
5:30 to 7 pm., Thursday, Sept. 12 at the 2100 Building.
Pick up pointers on putting together an effective application. RSVP to Jenny Crooks, 206-684-7084, by Tuesday, September 10.

The deadline for receipt of applications is 5:00 pm on Monday, October 7.

The Small and Simple Projects Fund provides matching funds of up to $25,000 to support community members as they work together to build a stronger and healthier neighborhood through civic participation. Activities may be physical projects, as well as educational, cultural, and relationship-strengthening activities.

To begin the application process, groups need to register first at webgrants.seattle.gov, the city’s web-based application and fund management system.

Celebrating its 25th anniversary, the Neighborhood Matching Fund has awarded approximately $50 million to neighborhood groups for community projects across the city. To learn more about the Fund, visit www.seattle.gov/neighborhoods/nmf/.

Sustainable West Seattle September Community Forum is “Keeping Puget Sound Healthy: Actions We Can Take.”

Join Sustainable West Seattle Monday, September 16 from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm at the Senior Center of West Seattle, for a presentation and panel discussion on work being done by citizens, organizations and the government to keep Puget Sound healthy and restore the ecosystem.

We will examine the current state of Puget Sound, personal actions that individuals can take to keep the Sound healthy, City of Seattle incentives for the homeowner, and government infrastructure projects underway.

“Diver” Laura James from Tox-ick.org (and winner of the SWS Volunteer of the Year Award 2013) will discuss the problem of stormwater pollution in Puget Sound and the simple actions people can engage in to help it. A panel of experts from the community will follow up with a discussion on the steps we can take as individuals and a community to keep the Sound clean. The panel includes:

Susan Harper – Seattle Public Utilities

Steve Richmond – Garden Cycles

The forum is Monday, September 16th from 7-9 PM at the West Seattle Senior Center located at 4217 SW Oregon Street in Alaska Junction.

Editor’s Note: This is an update from King County Wastewater Division regarding the Murray Pump Station work at Lowman Beach. As the reports are forwarded to community members, we will continue to publish them on the SWS site. This is a three-year-plus project with the deconstruction element only the first of many continuous months of heavy equipment activity.

King County’s contractor has cleared three of the buildings on the Murray Combined Sewer Overflow Control Facility site and will continue working their way to the site’s northern boundary through September. During working hours, you will continue to see equipment and trucks moving in and out of the work zone and containers adjacent to the site for the completion of demolition activities. Removed materials will be transported via Lincoln Park Way Southwest. The site’s fencing will remain extended to the east curb of Beach Drive Southwest while materials are removed from the site and site stabilization activities are underway. The street’s eastern sidewalk and parking will also remain closed; pedestrians and bicyclists are strongly encouraged to use the Beach Drive Southwest’s western sidewalk for the duration of the project. Work is expected to be complete by the end of September.

Some neighbors reported hearing noise coming from the site after normal work hours on Friday August 23. The noise came from a malfunctioning smoke alarm buried in debris on site. King County deeply regrets the inconvenience and appreciates those community members who used the project hotline to alert the County’s project team to the issue. All community members are encouraged to use the project hotline: 206-205-9185 to convey inquiries or concerns with the project, as the hotline is routinely staffed around the clock and on weekends.

What to expect

Work hours will be 7:00 am to 5:00 pm on weekdays. No work is expected over the next several weekends.

Access to Beach Drive Southwest will be maintained at all times.

Lowman Beach Park will remain open.

Project fencing extends over the sidewalk to the east curb of Beach Drive Southwest to maintain public safety.

Beach Drive Southwest’s western sidewalk remains open for pedestrians and bicyclists.

Increased noise and activity typical of a construction site.

Heavy equipment including trucks, excavators, and construction containers operating on and around the project site.

No parking along the eastern side of Beach Drive Southwest and both sides of Murray Avenue Southwest through the end of September.

Increased truck traffic on nearby streets.

The existing structures on the Murray CSO Control Facility site must be removed before construction of the new storage facility begins in late 2013. The facility will safeguard Puget Sound by storing sewage and polluted stormwater during storms, and preventing regional sewer system overflows into the water off of Lowman Beach Park.

King County Conservation District funding is available to landowners for stream and wetland habitat restoration.

The King Conservation District has a variety of programs to help landowners with aquatic areas to protect and improve the health of streams, rivers, wetlands, lakes, and ponds.

King County Conservation District provide project design, labor from the Washington Conservation Corps to remove invasive species, re-plant with natives, and three years of free maintenance and monitoring.

KCD’s services and labor are free. Landowners pay a small cost-share for materials, including plants and mulch. To be eligible, landowners must have a KCD Farm Plan. To learn more about KCD habitat enhancement services, contact Jacobus Saperstein at 425-282-1912, or email him at jacobus.saperstein@kingcd.org.